What does it mean for Brighton and Hove to be a City of Sanctuary?

Mike Collyer (University of Sussex) and colleagues

This session will take the form of a roundtable involving participants from a range of Brighton based organisations, including refugee community groups, all of whom contribute to make the city of a more welcoming place. We will consider what it means in practical terms for Brighton to be a City of Sanctuary and what kind of enabling policy environment is required to facilitate the work of these organisations. How can we ensure that this makes the city a more welcoming place for refugees and asylum seekers and a better place to live for everyone?

• Mike Collyer is Professor of Geography at the Sussex Centre for Migration Research. He is a political geographer with an interest in the relationship between people on the move and state institutions. His books include Migration (with Michael Samers) and Emigration Nations. He has held visiting fellowships around the world and was a Fulbright Scholar at the University of Washington. He currently chairs the Independent Advisory Group on Country of Origin Information, within the Office of the UK’s Chief Inspector of Borders and Immigration. He also chairs Sanctuary on Sea, Brighton’s City of Sanctuary group..